I'm totally jonesing over smartypants Karen von Hahn's new outdoor coffee table upcycled from an old Simpson's-Sears department store sign (the lovely vintage script logo hails from 1953). Karen discovered the sign in a junk-filled emporium she dubbed 'the sheds' out in Bayfield, Ontario, and lugged it home. Her handy-with-tools other half then popped a piece of plywood beneath, and screwed on those fancy-schmancy metal legs she'd ordered from Hairpinlegs.com to create, if you ask me, the perfect spot for a tall and frosty glass of Pimm's. Love how the Kelly green of the sign picks up on the green in her outdoor furniture upholstery, and also how Karen so snappily whacks the nail on the head regarding al fresco style - "Everybody is so busy recreating either a Tuscan villa or a South Beach nightclub in their backyard that nothing has any real style." Check in on Karen's blog here, and be sure to check out her new Style Czar column for the Toronto Star's Weekend Living section. Oh, and you'll see inside Karen's home very shortly too, since she'll be gracing the August issue of House & Home along with little old me.